


Three Steps Around

by betsib



Series: Tumblr prompts [7]
Category: The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-04-23
Updated: 2014-04-23
Packaged: 2018-01-20 12:49:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,859
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1511153
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/betsib/pseuds/betsib
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Leo discovers that whispering into Nico's ear is a sure way to get the boy flustered and embarrassed, and he finds it adorable. Teasing soon turns into something more.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Three Steps Around

**Author's Note:**

> A combination of two prompts, one anonymous on wanting Leo and Nico's early relationship and how they got together, and on by fuzzybatbutts wanting Leo to make Nico all embarrassed and stammering while whispering into his ears. I'm so sorry it has taken be this long to write it.

Things hadn’t worked out with Calypso.

Leo wasn’t really sure why he had expected them to. He had managed to get her off her island, less due to his technical skills and more due to the insanely terrifying conversation with the gods after the war, and for a while everything had seemed perfect. Then it started to become apparent that they really didn’t fit together, now that they weren’t stuck on an island alone. In the end their breakup had been a mutual decision.

Still, it left him feeling like the seventh wheel again. Whenever their group met up, he was always the odd man out, even though he knew the others didn’t see it that way. Strangely enough, things were better when Nico was around.

“The seven + Nico” was practically a running joke around both camps by now. Nico himself had argued that Reyna should be included, but she almost never joined their gatherings so it was a mute point. Besides, considering the things Nico had done in the war most of them felt it should have been “the eight of prophecy”, anyway. The son of Hades still freaked Leo out occasionally, but he had the function of making their group an even number and was pretty decent company. He could even be fun to be around, as Leo discovered at Percy’s twentieth birthday party.

They were gathered at Percy’s mother’s apartment, just the eight of them. Percy’s mother and stepfather were staying away from there for the evening. The party had been pretty fun, playing silly games and stuffing their faces with blue birthday cake, but as always happened at some point at every gathering, the others started to pair off, leaving Nico and Leo as the only singles in the room.

Which was when Leo leaned over towards Nico. “You want to make a bet on which couple start making out first?” he whispered into Nico’s ear. He expected Nico to either roll his eyes or humor him, but instead the son of Hades shot up from the couch, covering his ear with one hand. Before he stalked off without a word Leo could see his face was bright red. Huh. That was pretty intriguing. Leo grinned as he made a mental note to try this again later.

He didn’t get a chance until the next time Nico visited Camp Half-Blood, about a month later. He was talking to Percy about something, looking slightly irritated, so Leo sneaked up behind him and whispered “Long time no see” into his ear. Nico immediately jolted away from him.

“Would, would you please stop, _stop_ doing that?” Nico spluttered, blushing so red you’d have thought Leo had said something inappropriate. He wondered what would happen if he actually did. If the merely whispering in his ear gave such a cute reaction, what would adding words do? It might get him a punch in the face, but Leo was prepared to risk it.

In the meantime, he just grinned. “So what’s up? Do you come bearing quests?”

“As a matter of fact, yes,” Nico said, rubbing his ear. “Like I just told Percy, I came across the strangest vehicle the other day, and thought it would be worth investigating.”

“And you’re sure it wasn’t just some hippie car or something?” Percy asked, causing Nico to scowl.

“Unless you want to call the dracanae that were driving it hippies, then yeah, I’m sure,” Nico said. “Also it had wings, though it wasn’t flying. It was moving pretty fast, though. I couldn't catch it.”

“That sounds awesome,” Leo said. “I’m in!”

“We should let Chiron know before we do anything,” Percy said, and they followed him up to the big house.

Convincing Chiron that the dracmobile needed investigating wasn’t hard. Leo, Percy and Nico would be the ones to go on this quest, since they happened to be the only ones of the seven (+Nico) at camp right then. Piper and Jason were visiting her father at the moment, though they would probably be back before the quest was finished.

“So, this thing will be on the roads, right? Should we go by car?” Percy asked, but Nico shook his head.

“It was crossing a field when I saw it,” he said. “Besides, do any of us even have a licence?”

Which was an excellent point. Leo grinned. “I have just the thing,” he said. “Smaller and faster than the _Argo II_ , suitable for three on a short journey. Come on, I’ll show you.”

He lead them to the bunker to have a look at the ship anchored outside. A flying sailing boat, built after the principles of the _Argo II_ , but much smaller and less clumsy to handle.

“I call her _Jenny_ ,” he said proudly. “For no particular reason. I just like the name.” 

“We could just use the pegasi, you know,” Percy said.

“They don’t like me, and the feeling is kinda mutual,” Nico said. “I’d rather take _Jenny_.”

Leo beamed at him. “You just became first mate. Percy can be the cabin boy,” he said. “Obviously, I’m the captain.”

“Obviously,” Nico said, rolling his eyes while Percy made a face at Leo. “Let’s get ourselves ready.”

They took off a few hours later, with Leo at the rudder. He grinned as he navigated them up into the sky. _Jenny_ sailed like a dream, moving with the winds. He might make a habit of taking her joyriding at some time when there wasn’t a quest going on.

“I don't really like flying, but this is pretty nice,” Percy said, leaning back in the cockpit with his hands behind his head.

“More comfortable than horses, isn’t it? And you can live in it.” Leo laughed, then looked over at Nico, who was sitting alone on the front deck. “Hey, Ghost boy! See anything?”

“A lot. The view is nice,” Nico said, looking back. “Nothing threatening or strange so far, though.”

“Well, good,” Leo said.

The only downside with the smaller ship was that there was less for them to do. Nico seemed fine with the stillness, but Percy and Leo were quickly becoming restless, which ended up resulting in silly travel games.

“Is it blue?” Percy asked, laying down in the cockpit and staring up at them.

“No. Why would it be blue?” Leo said, rolling his eyes. “Nico, your turn.”

Nico sighed. At their insistence he had joined them in the cockpit a while ago. “Fine. Is it bigger than this?” he asked, making a vaguely box shaped motion with his hands.

“Yes,” Leo said, grinning. 

“Did you build it?” Percy asked, and Leo’s grin got bigger as he answered in the affirmative.

“Are we sitting on it?” Nico asked, sighing when Leo nodded. “So it’s _Jenny_. This is the most boring game ever.”

“Agreed,” Percy said. “But we can’t exactly count yellow cars or something like that.”

“Okay, how about this,” Leo said, mostly because he really wanted something to do. “Two truths and one lie. We each tell three things about ourselves and the others has to guess which one is the lie. The more embarrassing the better”

“Could be interesting,” Percy said. “Nico, you go first, since you guessed right the last time.”

“This is ridiculous,” Nico muttered. “Fine. I can say _I'm friendly, please don’t kill me_ in twenty languages. Popcorn creeps me out. I can’t swim.”

“Twenty languages? That has to be false,” Leo said. “And why would popcorn creep you out?” 

“And you do know how to swim, right?” Percy frowned. “This _is_ two truths and one lie, right?”

Nico nodded in confirmation. Leo frowned, thinking hard.

“The popcorn-thing is too weird to be a lie,” Leo said. “I’m guessing languages.”

“I’m going with swimming. There’s no way you don’t know how to swim,” Percy said vehemently, and Nico smiled.

“Percy’s right. I do know how to swim,” Nico said. “The languages-thing is because I accidentally ended up in strange places when learning how to shadow travel. And I got turned into a corn-plant once, so popcorn’s been strange after that.”

“Awesome, man,” Leo laughed in spite of having lost. “Percy’s turn, then.”

“Umm,” Percy said hesitantly. “I steered a pirate ship once. I’ve been kicked out of pretty much every school I’ve ever attended. My shoe size is 7.5.”

“The last one is a lie,” Nico said immediately. “You have bigger feet than I do.”

“Yeah, we can see that,” Leo laughed. “That was easy.”

“Sorry, couldn’t come up with anything better,” Percy said. “Your turn.”

“Let’s see...” Leo said, thinking. “I have a hat that I’ve knitted myself. I got caught stealing makeup once. I had a crush on Jason for a while.”

“And two of these are true?” Percy laughed. “I’m guessing the make-up one is false.”

Nico looked hesitant, afraid almost. “The last one?”

“Gentlemen, you’re both wrong,” Leo grinned. “Looks like I win this round.”

“Really? Why did you need make up?” Percy asked.

“A girl I liked put me up to it. The cop let me off the hook after I fed him a sob story about how I’ve always wanted to be a girl and nobody understood me,” Leo shrugged, then turned towards Nico. “And have you even _seen_ Jason? Anyone with the slightest inkling towards guys would fall for him.”

“I didn’t,” Nico said quietly, and Leo stared at him while Percy almost fell off the bench, trying to sit up. Nico blushed deeply and looked away, tense like he was preparing to flee.

“You’re into guys?” Leo exclaimed. “That’s news. Way to steal my thunder, though.” He laughed a bit at the last part.

“I had no idea,” Percy said, looking a bit shocked. “I thought you had a crush on Annabeth.”

Nico rolled his eyes. “She’s not my type,” he muttered.

“Well, Percy, looks like you’re the only straight man here,” Leo laughed. “Or do you have secrets to share as well?”

“No,” Percy said, shaking his head. “I’m straight. Glad you guys told me, though. Does anyone else know?”

“Piper does,” Leo shrugged.

“Just Hazel. And Jason,” Nico said. ”It’s a long story.” His face was still red, but he seemed more relaxed now.

Percy cleared his throat. “So Nico, it’s your turn again.”

“Don’t you think we’ve learned enough about each other for today?” Nico asked with a pale smile.

“You’re probably right,” Percy said, looking around. “I spy, with my little eye, something that begins with...Watch out. Stymphalian birds incoming!” 

He got up and summoned his sword.

“Relax, I prepared for this,” Leo said, flipping a few switches near the rudder. “You might want to cover your ears.”

Opera music began blazing out of the loudspeakers hidden in the cockpit just as the birds attacked. They shrieked in pain and flew around uncontrollably, a couple of them hitting the boat by accident but harmless for the most part.

“Good thinking,” Nico said when the skies were clear again and Leo turned off the music. “My ears are ringing.”

“Want me to have a look at them for you?” Leo asked, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively. Nico blushed faintly as he rolled his eyes.

“Are you two going to start flirting with each other now?” Percy asked, grinning at them. “You will warn me before you start making out, right?”

“Oh, like you ever warned anyone before making out with your girlfriend,” Leo retorted.

“Can we just not have this conversation?” Nico asked. “Besides, we need to keep a better look out. We’re looking for a monster vehicle, remember?”

“Right, the dracmobile,” Leo nodded. “Fine, go keep watch.”

Percy took over the rudder, and Leo took the opportunity to make some notes for future improvements to the ship, before looking over at Nico who had reassumed his position at the helm. He was sitting completely still with his hair moving in the wind, looking kind of serene. So Ghost Boy liked guys, huh. That was some interesting news. Not that Leo had ever really been interested in him _that_ way, but he did enjoy teasing him. And why not, really? Nico was kinda good looking in a thoughtless way, at least when he wasn't actively _trying_ to be scary, and they were both single. He might as well give it a shot, he was pretty used to rejection by now anyway.

There was no sign of the dracmobile that day, so they anchored in the middle of nowhere for the night. They ate dinner inside the boat, nothing complicated, just pasta with sauce cooked on the small stove by the entrance. 

“So who’s sleeping where?” Percy asked when they had finished eating.

“I would like the front cabin if you two don’t mind,” Nico said hesitantly. He was sitting beside Leo, who saw his chance to lean over.

“Do you want company?” he whispered into Nico’s ear. Nico immediately jumped away from him, accidentally shaking the table in the process. 

“Stop, stop _doing_ that!” he spluttered angrily, face red and flustered. He turned and entered the front cabin without another word, closing the door behind him. Leo couldn’t help but grin at his reaction. It was adorable, really.

Percy was looking at him suspiciously from across the table. “You really are flirting with him, aren’t you?”

Leo shrugged. “It’s hard to resist,” he said. “He’s cute when he’s embarrassed.”

“I can still hear you, you know,” Nico’s voice came from behind the door, still sounding somewhere between angry and flustered. Leo couldn't help but laugh.

***

 

Leo had the second watch that night, and was sitting on the front deck with his notebook in his hands, trying to figure out a way to rig up a good alarm system around the boat that wouldn’t go off if ordinary birds came near. He looked up as he heard the hatch to the front cabin open beside him and Nico climbed out.

“Hey, couldn’t sleep?” Leo asked.

“No,” Nico said briefly. “You can go back down if you want.”

“You sure?” Leo asked. “I’ve barely been here for an hour, and you haven’t had more than four hours of sleep at most.”

“I’ll be fine,” Nico said, sitting down a few feet away from him. Leo grinned as he moved a bit closer.

“You know, we could find something more interesting to do,” he said into Nico’s ear, and was promptly pushed away, violently.

“Would you stop that?” Nico said, sounding angry. “How many times do I have to tell you?”

“Calm down, I was just kidding around,” Leo said, backing up with his hands in the air. “This is the first time you’ve sounded seriously upset by it. What’s wrong?”

“Nothing’s wrong. I just don’t like people being that close to me,” Nico said, looking out at the dark world beneath them.

“Sorry,” Leo said, wondering if he should leave. Nico looked slightly haunted, sitting beside him hugging his knees, but Leo didn’t really get people. “So it’s just the proximity, then? You don’t mind me flirting with you?”

“I’d rather you didn’t, but I know you don’t mean it seriously,” Nico shrugged.

“What if I was serious?”

Nico’s head snapped up.”What?” 

“Come on, we’re the only two singles in our group of friends, and we’re both queer,” Leo said. “So I figured, why not?”

“And I’m supposed to just go along with it?” Nico scoffed.

“Hey, nobody’s forcing you,” Leo said, shrugging. “But for the record, I really do think you’re cute when you blush.”

Nico looked away, probably angry at himself for actually turning red at that statement. Leo grinned at him.

“See? Cute,” he said. “So what do you say? Wanna give it a go?”

“I say you’re crazy,” Nico said, shaking his head. “I’m not in love with you.”

“I’m not in love with you either. What’s that got to do with anything?” Leo asked, then laughed. “Wait, you’re an old fashioned romantic, aren’t you? That’s so sweet!”

“I’m not! I just...” Nico groaned. “You know what? Fine. Why the hell not, like you said.”

“Really?” Leo asked, wide eyed. “Wow. I didn’t expect that.”

“Well, you asked me,” Nico said, clearly growing angry again. “I you don’t want to, just say so.”

“I didn’t mean that,” Leo said hurriedly. “I just kind of figured there wasn’t a snowball’s chance in hell you’d say yes. But hey, awesome!”

“So what now?” Nico asked. It sounded like a challenge, somehow. Leo really didn’t know. He wasn’t exactly experienced with this sort of stuff, except for his short relationship with Calypso.

“Um,” Leo said uncertainly. “I should...kiss you goodnight, maybe?”

“Who’s the old fashioned romantic now?” Nico said wryly. “And I told you, I don’t like people close to me.”

“Well, you need to work on that, then,” Leo said. “Think of it as therapy.”

With that he leaned over and placed a quick peck on Nico’s cheek, withdrawing before he could be pushed away again. Nico blushed furiously as he looked at Leo in surprise, despite the chasteness of the kiss. It really was adorable. Leo grinned as he stood up.

“Well, then, _honey_. Good night.”

“I swear, if you ever call me that again I _will_ kill you,” Nico said, and Leo laughed all the way down to his bed.

He was still smiling as he lay down to sleep, listening to Percy’s snores from the other side of the boat. So he suddenly had a boyfriend. _Nico di Angelo_ , son of Hades, Ghost king and the (occasionally)creepiest guy ever, was suddenly his boyfriend. Leo still wasn’t really sure how it had happened, but it had. The question was where to go from there.

***

He woke up a few hours later by the ship beginning to move.

“Get up!” Nico shouted from the cockpit. “We found them!”

Leo muttered swear words under his breath as he forced himself up from the bed. Percy was steering the ship when he came out, and pointed out the vehicle on the ground, quickly moving away from them. Leo rubbed his sleepy eyes to get a better look.

“Should we shoot them down?” he asked.

“Do Jenny even have cannons?” Percy asked. “Apart from that tiny thing over there.”

“That tiny thing packs more punch than you do,” Leo said, manning the swivel gun. “Should I shoot?”

“Go ahead.”

Leo wasn’t the best shot in the camps, but the target in front of them was pretty big. It looked like an oversized old fashioned train engine, though it had something that looked like wings attached to the sides. And it didn't run on rails either, or even wheels. No, it had two thick runners underneath, like it was supposed to travel on snow rather than bare ground. As he aimed at the runners, he understood why Nico had settled for calling it a vehicle rather than trying to explain what it was. Leo wondered who the hell had designed the thing.

As he destroyed the left runner with one shot, the vehicle continued to move forward for a bit, then spun for few laps before finally coming to a halt. A few dizzy looking dracanae were visible making their way out of the wreckage.

“Nice shot!” Nico said, and Leo grinned as he took over the rudder from Percy.

“Go get them,” he said. “I’ll land her, then come join you.”

He moved close enough that Nico and Percy were able to jump down on top of the wreckage, then moved to land the ship a bit away. He had worked hard on building her and didn’t want her damaged in the battle, or worse: hijacked.

When he finally reached the wreckage there wasn’t much left for him to do. Percy and Nico, being the sword masters they were, had already defeated the dracanae, though judging by the state of the surroundings it hadn’t been such an easy win. The most surprising thing was that they were outside the wreckage talking to a maybe eight year old girl. Nico was kneeling down in front of her, smiling reassuringly as he said something Leo didn't hear.

“Who’s this?” Leo asked as he approached. The girl gave him a frightened look and moved to hide behind Nico, because Leo was apparently scarier than the son of Hades.

“Your sister, I believe,” Nico said. “This is Emilia. The dracanae kidnapped her to design the vehicle for them. Emilia, this is Leo.”

“Hey,” Leo said, giving her a brief smile. “So why runners?”

“Leo,” Percy said warningly, but the girl just smiled back.

“Because it wouldn’t work,” she said. “I thought someone would come investigate it if I made it silly enough.”

“Smart girl,” Leo laughed. “It still moved pretty fast, though. What kind of motor does it have?”

“I think the more important question is why did the dracanae wanted a vehicle in the first place,” Nico said wryly.

“They said demigods had flying ships now, so they wanted one of their own,” Emilia said. “Are you really demigods? Do you really have flying ships?”

“Yes to both questions. Wanna see?” Leo grinned, and they started walking back to the ship. Emilia was borderline ecstatic when she saw _Jenny_ and asked a thousand questions. Leo didn’t mind answering. It was rare that someone took such a great interest in his work, after all. She was definitely his sister.

They hadn’t been up in the air long when Emilia started yawning and took Nico’s hand, asking if she could go to sleep. For some reason she had latched on to him, despite Leo being her actual big brother. Nico didn’t seem to mind, though. He smiled gently as he led her below deck.

“Are you jealous?” Percy asked, smirking at him.

“Why? Because my little sister prefers Nico’s company to mine?” Leo asked. “Nah. He seems to be better with children than I am anyway.”

“She was locked away inside the vehicle. I wouldn’t have known she was there if Nico hadn’t sensed her,” Percy said. “Makes me sick, thinking about how scared she must have been with those dracanae demanding she’d build a ship for them.”

Leo supposed he was right, though it hadn’t really occurred to him. “She seemed to handle it pretty well, though.”

A while later Nico came back up to join them in the cockpit. “She’s asleep,” he said. “She was pretty exhausted after everything.”

“I guess it’s smooth sailing back to camp then,” Percy said, yawning. “I’m going to take a nap as well. Wake me up if something attacks us.”

He disappeared under deck, leaving Nico and Leo alone in the cockpit.

Nico sighed. “I should probably head back to the underworld,” he said. “I doubt there will be any problems on the way back.”

Leo stared at him. “What, you’re leaving?” he asked. “Now?”

“We found the...the dracmobile, as you called it, and Emilia is safe with you and Percy,” Nico said. “I don’t really have any reason to go back to camp.”

“Wow, that’s harsh,” Leo said, making a face. “You know, I’ve been turned down before, but most of them don’t say yes before they run away from me.”

“Oh,” Nico said, wide eyed. “Right. I wasn’t sure you were actually serious about that.”

“Well, I was,” Leo muttered. “You could at least go on a date with me before you dump me, you know.”

Nico blushed at that. “Sorry, I wasn’t thinking,” he said. “What did you have in mind?”

“Is that a yes?” Leo asked, starting to grin as Nico turned a deeper red. “Well, we could go pretty much anywhere.”

“We need to go back and report to Chiron first,” Nico said uncertainly. “Tomorrow evening we can go wherever you want.”

“Great. It’s a date then,” Leo grinned.

They reached Camp Half-Blood late that evening. They were all tired, so they just gave Chiron a quick report before heading to dinner. Emilia was claimed by Hephaistos before the meal was over, which surprised absolutely no one. Leo’s other siblings took care of her, which he was thankful for. Unlike Nico, he didn’t handle children very well.

***

The following day he knocked on the door to the Jupiter cabin. Jason opened the door, and Leo could see Piper sitting inside.

“I have a problem and I need your help,” Leo told them, and Jason stepped aside to let him in.

“What’s wrong?” Jason asked, sounding concerned.

“Okay, here’s the thing,” Leo said. “I have a date with Nico tonight and I have no idea where to go or what to wear. Help me.”

They stared at him in a stunned silence for a moment.

“Nico?” Jason repeated. “You have a date with Nico?”

“Yes, and you know him pretty well, right? Help me.”

“Sorry, I just...” Jason said, sounding confused. “I didn’t even know you liked guys.”

“I did, but I didn’t think Nico was your type,” Piper said. “How did this happen?”

“I asked him, and he said okay,” Leo said, getting frustrated. “Come on guys, I really don’t know what to do. Do I bring him to a cemetery or something?”

“I wouldn’t do that unless you want to piss him off,” Jason said with a small smile. 

“Why not just go with the standard dinner-and-a-movie formula?,” Piper said. “It’s not like he’s been on many dates either, right?” 

“McDonald’s is a safe bet when it comes to Nico,” Jason nodded. “And don’t bother dressing up too much, you’d just make him uncomfortable. He’ll probably wear his usual clothes.”

“You might still want to groom yourself a little bit, though,” Piper said. “Be clean, at least.”

“And don’t touch him too much, he hates that,” Jason added. “Don’t try to rush anything.”

“And try to keep the tasteless jokes to a minimum.”

“Way to raise my confidence,” Leo muttered.

***

Jason had been right. Nico looked exactly like he usually did, except that he seemed a bit more nervous. Leo had taken Piper’s advice and made sure he didn’t have any oil spills or burn marks anywhere, but otherwise he was in his usual clothes as well.

“Hey,” Leo said. “Ready to go?”

“Just tell me where,” Nico said. “What do you have in mind?”

“I’m thinking a movie, then getting something to eat,” Leo said. “Original, I know. If you have any other suggestions I’m open to them.”

“No, it’s okay,” Nico said giving him a small smile. “It sounds fun. Give me your hand.”

Leo grabbed his hand, and Nico let the shadows swallow them. Leo really wasn’t fond of shadow travel, mainly because it bothered him that he had no idea how it worked. Still, the instant travel was pretty convenient. Nico brought them to an alley right outside a small movie theater in the suburbs, probably to avoid the crowds. Leo was perfectly fine with that.

They studied the posters outside for a while, and Leo realized just how out of touch he was with the mortal world. He had no idea what any of the movies were about, and Nico knew even less.

“So, um, any suggestions?” Nico asked, his eyes wandering over the posters like they were in a language he didn’t understand.

“Not really,” Leo said. “Do you want explosion and car chases, people getting kicked in the balls for fun or watching two people you know are going to end up together take a whole movie to figure out they like each other and probably chase after airplanes by the end?”

Nico gave him a confused look. “Movies have changed a lot since I was little,” he said, and Leo started laughing.

“Yeah, gone are the good old days with black-and-white screens and actors doing pantomime,” he said.

“We did have talkies when I grew up,” Nico muttered. “And that poster is black-and-white.”

“It’s because it’s a horror flick. The movie itself is in color,” Leo said. “You want to watch a horror movie?”

Nico took a long look at the dead girl on the poster, then shook his head. “No, I don’t think so. Just pick something you think you’ll like.”

Eventually they settled for “explosions and car chases”. Leo briefly considered buying popcorn, before remembering what Nico had said about being creeped out by it. Besides, they were going to eat something afterwards anyway, so they stuck to buying soda.

The movie wasn’t the worst action flick Leo had ever seen, but it wasn’t particularly good, either. It had all the stereotypes and zero originality. Nico, who wasn’t familiar with the genre, was watching with his eyebrows raised and an expression of disbelief on his face.

“Is this supposed to be a parody of something?” Nico whispered about halfway through, when the maybe twentieth car got smashed. Leo grinned.

“No, I guess people just like to see things get thrashed,” he answered.

“It seems a ridiculous waste of money,” Nico said, causing Leo to laugh loudly.

“Be quiet back there!” someone hissed from the seat in front of them, and Leo stopped laughing. He leaned over towards Nico.

“Wanna get out of here?” he whispered into Nico’s ear, and predictably Nico jolted right up, but he nodded as he was covering his ear. Leo chuckled as they made their way out of the theater.

“Maybe we should have gone with the stupid couple chasing airplanes,” Nico said once they were outside.

“I doubt it’s any better. At some point I’m going to introduce you to some of the _really_ good movies you’ve missed,” Leo said. “How about McDonalds? We can eat hamburgers and talk about our favorite car crash from the movie.”

Nico rolled his eyes. “I liked the one where the car ended up an unusable piece of junk by the end,” he said. “No wait, that was all of them.”

Leo laughed at that. Who knew Ghost Boy had a sense of humor?

It took them less than five minutes to find a McDonalds. Leo teased Nico a little about buying a happy meal but the boy just shrugged and said he couldn’t stomach a big meal anyway. Considering how thin he was, that was probably true.

Leo was honestly surprised by how easy it was to keep the conversation going. Sure, they had spent time together before, usually by default at parties while the others were making out, and talking had never been difficult, but this was a completely different situation. Leo grinned. He was on a date with Nico di Angelo and he was actually having fun.

Until a group of five pretty girls in cheerleading outfits approached their table, anyway.

“Are you two here alone?” One of them said, smiling widely. “So are we. Maybe we could have some fun together.”

For some reason her voice sent chills up Leo’s spine. He glanced over at Nico, who was glaring at the girls, looking terrifying.

“If you leave now, I’ll spare you,” he said with a hand on his sword.

The girl’s smile disappeared. “You’re very perceptive for a demigod,” she said, and all hell broke loose.

Leo barely managed to duck as the emposai attacked. Nico beheaded two of them in a couple of seconds, but had some trouble as the last three teamed up on him. They seemed to have momentarily forgotten about Leo. The mortal customers were fleeing the scene, screaming, probably thinking it was some sort of gang battle. The police were probably going to show up soon.

Leo didn’t have a sword (it was safer for everybody that way) so he picked up a chair and used it to distract one of the emposai to make things easier for Nico. The empousa snarled as she attacked him with fire, which he would have laughed at it the paper wrappings on the table hadn’t caught it and started burning, setting off the fire alarm and causing the sprinklers to turn on, drenching them in water. Leo could hear sirens outside, coming closer.

Nico finally managed to dispose of his opponents and cut down Leo’s from behind when the police stormed into the building. For a split moment Leo thought they were fucked, then Nico grabbed his hand and brought him down into the shadows under the table. They came out behind the statue of Athena on Half-Blood hill.

Leo laughed loudly as he wiped his wet face with his hands. "Oh, man. That has got to be the shortest date ever."

Nico gave him a smile. "It was pretty fun, though," he said, starting to walk back to the cabins. "Until the last part, at least." 

“I guess it was, all things considered,” Leo said, smiling back. “I don’t think either of us are really meant for the traditional dating-formula, though.”

“Agreed,” Nico said, laughing a little. “At least you didn’t try to take me dancing.”

“Dancing doesn’t really belong to the formula anymore,” Leo grinned. “Why, did you want to dance?”

“Absolutely not,” Nico said vehemently, and Leo laughed.

“I bet I could dance better than you,” he said teasingly, even though he really didn't think he could.

“I doubt it,” Nico said. “I used to dance with my sister all the time. I still remember the steps.”

“Really? Oh, this I’ve got to see,” Leo grinned. “Tomorrow night. I’ll bring some music to your cabin, and you can show me.”

“You going to let me lead?” Nico asked, sounding amused. “Fine. It’s a deal.”

“Great! See you tomorrow then,” Leo said, clapping Nico’s shoulder before heading back to his own cabin. He had briefly considered trying for a goodnight kiss, but he was pushing his luck as it was. And he had spontaneously managed to land himself a second date. With dancing and touching and the privacy of the Hades cabin. Leo grinned to himself. Who would have thought?

***

“Well? How did it go?” Piper asked curiously after breakfast the following day.

“Good. We saw half a movie, ate some hamburgers, fought some monsters and ran from the police,” Leo said, watching her smile fade.

“Oh, gods, Leo. I’m so sorry,” she said.

“It’s okay, it was pretty fun,” Leo grinned. “And hey, I got a second date. Sort of.”

“Really?” Piper asked, surprised. “That’s good. And I probably should warn you, pretty much the whole camp knows Nico is gay by now. You might have competition.”

“Pft, they’ve got nothing on me,” Leo said dismissively, though he wasn’t nearly as confident as he tried to let on. Nico was mostly going out with him by default, after all. What if someone hotter (figuratively speaking) came around? By rights Leo shouldn’t really care about that. It wasn’t like Leo really liked Nico all that much, after all. Right?

Piper gave him a knowing look. “I’m sure it’ll be okay,” she said. “Don’t worry.”

Leo _was_ worried, especially when he knocked on the door to the Hades cabin that evening carrying an Ipod and two loudspeakers. Nico opened the door a moment later. For once he wasn’t wearing his jacket, and his T-shirt showed off the fact that his arms were no longer skin and bone. He had pretty nice muscles, actually. Not that Leo noticed. 

“Hey,” Nico said, sounding slightly nervous as he gestured for Leo to come in.

“It’s pretty dark in here,” Leo commented as he looked around. It was dark, but kind of comfy looking, all warm earthly tones and lots of fabrics.

“You’ll get used to it,” Nico shrugged. “So, um, were you actually serious about dancing?”

“I brought music, didn’t I?” Leo grinned, lifting up the loudspeakers. “And you should know by now that I’m always serious.”

“No, you’re not,” Nico scoffed, causing Leo to laugh as he walked over to set up the music. A pop song he'd been listening to during work started playing.

“So,” Leo said. “When you say you can dance I assume you don’t mean modern dancing, right?”

“Obviously,” Nico said. “I haven’t exactly had time for dancing since the Lotus Hotel. Do you have any real music on there at all?”

“Real music, he says,” Leo grinned. “Sounding like an old man.”

“Well, excuse me for having taste,” Nico muttered. 

“Relax. Here we go,” Leo said, finding the playlist he had created earlier that day with music from the thirties. “Better?”

“Yes,” Nico said uncertainly. “This is foxtrot. That okay with you?”

“I have no idea,” Leo said honestly. “How is it done?”

Nico rolled his eyes, smiling a little. “Give me your arm,” he said, placing one of Leo’s hands on his shoulder while taking the other in his hand. Nico’s other hand was on Leo’s waist, which felt a bit strange, but not in a bad way.

“Right foot back. Slow, slow, quick, quick,” Nico said. “Follow my lead.”

It wasn’t a disaster exactly, but it was way harder than it should have been. Every time Leo thought he was starting to get the hang of it he forgot himself, and he lost count of the times he stepped on Nico’s toes. Eventually Nico pulled away from him.

“Maybe we should do something easier,” he said. “Do you know how to waltz?”

“In theory,” Leo said sheepishly, and Nico rolled his eyes.

“Alright, I’ll show you the basic steps,” he said, taking a hold of Leo again. “Right foot back.”

Leo still stumbled a little, but Nico was right, this was a _lot_ easier. Nico kept counting to three over and over again, making it easier to find the pace. Once Leo got it down Nico stopped moving.

“There was a waltz three or four songs ago,” he said. “Let’s try it with music.” 

Once Leo had found the right song Nico started leading him back and forth again. He counted for the first twelve steps, then stopped. Leo didn’t need him to continue, he could hear the rhythm in the music now. It was actually kind of nice, now that he wasn’t completely focused on getting the steps right. Nico and Leo were close together, chests almost touching, moving as one. Even when Nico gently started leading him around in circles on the floor they didn’t break pace. Leo actually managed to stop looking at their feet and start looking at Nico instead. Nico had a small smile on his face, and seemed to be enjoying himself. Their eyes met, and Leo’s breath hitched. Suddenly the dance seemed a little less innocent.

As the song ended, Nico brought them to a stop. Leo was still staring into Nico’s dark eyes, wondering if he would dare move just a little bit closer. In the end he could feel the moment slipping away as the next song begun, and so he made a quick decision and leaned in to press his mouth against Nico’s. Nico made a surprised sound, but didn’t push him away, so that was a victory. He even kissed back a little.

It was a pretty chaste kiss, all things considered. No tongue or anything, but it still sent a jolt through Leo’s body. He was more than a little disappointed when Nico pulled away, even if his flustered face topped the list of the cutest things Leo’d ever seen.

Nico cleared his throat. “It’s getting late,” he said.

“Right, I should probably get going,” Leo said, trying not to let his disappointment show. “So, um, foxtrot tomorrow, then?”

“Sorry, I have to head down to the underworld. I promised my father,” Nico said uncomfortably. “But I should be back in a couple of days if you still want to.”

“It’s a date then,” Leo said, grinning happily. “Can I have another kiss before I go?”

Nico went completely red at that and didn’t seem to know what to do with himself, so Leo took that as a yes and leaned in again. This kiss felt different from the first one, somehow. Maybe because Leo wasn’t afraid of getting punched in the face this time. Maybe because Nico was a lot more responsive. As neither of them were particularly experienced it was pretty awkward, but it still did funny things to Leo’s stomach. He wondered if Nico felt the same way.

“Goodnight, then,” Leo said as they parted. “I’ll see you in a couple of days.”

“Yeah. Goodnight,” Nico said, a bit short of breath. Leo resisted the urge to kiss him a third time and walked out the door instead.

***

“So?” Piper asked the next day, smiling curiously. “How was it? Still good?”

“Still good,” Leo confirmed. “I failed the foxtrot but he taught me how to waltz.”

“Nico can dance?” Piper laughed in surprise. “Don’t tell anyone else. The Apollo and Aphrodite guys would fall over themselves trying to ask him out.”

“Why this all of the sudden?” Leo asked. “I have never heard of Nico being particularly popular before.”

“He has always been popular from a distance,” Piper shrugged. “Since he’s got this bad boy-vibe and intimidates people. Not to mention he and Reyna saved camp in a spectacular fashion. I guess he seems more approachable now that people know he’s gay.”

“I admit that he can be creepy, but a bad boy?” Leo scoffed. “Nico? The guy who blushes at anything even remotely sexual?”

“I know. Even you are more of a bad boy than he is, which is saying a lot,” Piper laughed. “But they don’t know him that well, and it’s probably a good thing. Nico is too nice for his own good sometimes. I love my siblings, but I'd hate to see Nico end up with some of them.”

“I thought you didn’t particularly like him.”

“I didn’t, but he’s hanging around Jason a lot so I’ve gotten to know him,” she said. “He puts up a tough front, but he’s really sweet once you get past that. More to the point, I didn’t realize you liked him.”

“He’s really cute when he blushes,” Leo shrugged. ”And like you said, he’s sweet. It doesn’t go much deeper than that, though.”

“Doesn’t it?” Piper smiled. Leo didn’t answer.

***

Nico was talking to some guy from the Aphrodite cabin the next time Leo saw him, a few days later. A really good-looking, well groomed guy, and Nico was apparently blushing at whatever he said. Leo felt a surge of jealousy as he walked up to them.

“So what do you say?” the guy asked, looking so sure of himself as he smiled towards Nico.

“Um, actually, I can’t. I’m sorry,” Nico said, looking extremely uncomfortable. The guy frowned, looking like he was going to say something, which was when Leo reached them.

“Hey, babe,” he whispered straight into Nico’s ear. As expected, Nico immediately jolted away from him.

“I, I told you to stop doing that!” Nico spluttered. “And don’t call me that! _Ever!_ ”

“Alright, alright,” Leo laughed. “When did you get back?”

“About an hour ago,” Nico said, still holding a hand protectively over his ear.

“Hey, we were talking, if you don’t mind,” the Aphrodite guy said, giving Leo an irritated look.

“Oh, sorry. Was I interrupting something?” Leo asked, feigning surprise.

“It’s okay,” Nico said, turning towards the Aphrodite guy again. “I’m flattered, really. But I’m sorry, I’m already taken.”

“Really? You and Valdez?” the guy said, looking surprised. “Well, if that’s what you like. If you ever feel like having a real man, though, you know where to find me.”

He stalked off, leaving them alone. “Asshole,” Leo muttered angrily.

“I’m sure he didn’t mean it that way. Rejection isn’t easy,” Nico said. “Nor is rejecting people.”

“There may be more where that came from, according to Piper,” Leo said, grabbing Nico’s hand. “Come on.”

Leo led them back to the Hades cabin. Once inside, he threw caution to the wind and leaned in to push his lips against Nico’s. Nico made a muffled sound of surprise against his mouth, but after a moment he did start to kiss back. Leo was admittedly a bit too aggressive, feeling possessive after what he’d just seen, but Nico didn’t seem to mind letting him take the lead on this. 

“You okay?” Nico asked as they parted, sounding out of breath. He looked beautifully flustered, but also a bit concerned.

“I’m fine,” Leo said, but Nico raised his eyebrows, clearly not buying it.

“If this is about what that guy said...” Nico started, and Leo groaned.

“Can we not talk about that guy?” he said, exasperated, causing Nico to frown.

“Then what’s wrong?” he asked, pulling back to cross his arms over his chest. Leo sighed.

“Fine,” he muttered. “I was jealous, okay?” 

Nico blinked. “What?”

“Piper told me you’re actually a pretty popular guy with the Aphrodite and Apollo cabins,” Leo said, watching Nico’s eyes widened in surprise and disbelief. “And we got together pretty much by default. How long until you find someone else? Someone taller and more handsome and manly and shit? I mean, you certainly seem to have better options here.”

“And you don’t? Is that why you’re angry?” Nico frowned.

“What? Damnit, Nico!” Leo said. ”I’m angry because the only reason you’re dating me is because I was the first to ask. I’m surprised you didn’t dump me for mister Real Man back there.”

“For your information, I’m not so desperate I would say yes to just anyone,” Nico said icily. “I don’t know him, and he doesn’t know me, either.”

“So why did you say yes to me, then?” Leo asked.

“Because I know you, and I don’t mind having you around,” Nico said angrily. “I figured we could give it a try, and I thought it worked surprisingly well so far. I didn’t realize you were just waiting for me to end it.”

“I’m not,” Leo said. “I just...Oh, fuck it. I really like you, and I got jealous because a handsome guy hit on you. That’s all.”

“You really like...me?” Nico repeated carefully, and Leo found himself blushing.

“Yes, okay?” he said. “I didn’t expect to like you as much as I do. You’re surprisingly fun to be around, and I don’t want this to end.”

“Me neither,” Nico said quietly. Leo looked up to see a faint red on his cheeks, and couldn’t help but to reach out and touch it. 

“Can I?” he whispered, and Nico blushed deeper, giving a single nod. Leo grinned happily as closed the distance between them.

The kiss felt different now, somehow. It was still clumsy and awkward, but it seemed more real, more genuine. Like they had been pretending all this time and were sharing their first real kiss. Leo could feel Nico’s arms around him, pulling him closer. He never wanted this kiss to end.

Eventually they did have to pull away from each other, for air if nothing else. They were both breathing heavily, looking at each other through half-closed lids.

After a while Leo cleared his throat. “So, um, can I have this dance?”

Nico looked up at him in surprise, then he started laughing. Leo stared at him, mesmerized. He couldn’t remember ever hearing Nico laugh before, and definitely not this genuinely happy. There was a tug in his heart at the sight. 

“Another waltz, or are you ready for the foxtrot?” Nico asked, still sounding amused.

“How about you let me lead the waltz this time?” Leo grinned.

It took them a moment to find the rhythm. Nico wasn’t used to being led, Leo wasn’t used to leading, but it worked out in the end. Leo didn’t want to admit it, but he might prefer Nico leading him. It was more relaxing that way.

They had almost finished the song when there was a knock on the door. Piper, Jason and Percy stood outside.

“What do you want?” Leo grumbled, irritated at being interrupted.

“These two idiots didn’t believe you were actually dancing,” Piper grinned. “And I figured I should warn you that Gary tried to pay off some Ares kids to beat you up, Leo.”

Nico gave a small laugh. “What, the _real man_ can’t do it by himself?”

“You’re missing the point here,” Leo said. “Someone wants to beat me up. How about some sympathy?”

“I doubt anyone will dare,” Nico said, rolling his eyes.

“I don’t know, those Ares kids has never really liked me,” Leo said uncertainly.

“Relax, Leo. They know they would get all of us after them if they tried anything,” Jason said, smiling at them. “So, dancing, huh?”

Nico shrugged, though he blushed a bit. “Leo wanted me to teach him.”

“You two are really together now, then?” Percy asked. Leo and Nico exchanged a glance.

“I guess we are,” Leo said, smiling slightly.

News traveled fast around camp. Leo had never been stared at as much as he was the following morning. He had had to endure an interrogation by the people in his own cabin the night before, with little Emilia being the loudest, and now he had the undivided attention of most of the campers, despite not doing anything but eat. Quite frankly it ruined his appetite.

People were shocked by his relationship with Nico. Not because they were two guys but because they thought Nico could do better. At least Leo assumed that was the case, considering the looks they gave him. Leo didn’t stay around for long before retreating into Bunker 9 and burying himself in his many projects.

Nico found him there a few hours later.

“Hey, did you manage to escape your adoring fans?” Leo asked, trying not to sound bitter. They had this conversation yesterday, no need to repeat it.

“A couple of campers asked me if it was true we were dating, but I hardly have fans,” Nico said dismissively. “What are you working on?”

“I’m trying to figure out a way to make the boat motors silent,” Leo said. “The constant humming is driving me nuts.”

“Really? I thought it was rather soothing,” Nico said, sitting down behind him. “Complete silence usually mean something is wrong, after all.”

“Says the guy who can move more soundlessly than anyone else,” Leo said with a laugh. “Admit it, you just don’t want anyone sneaking up on you.”

“You sneak up on me all the time,” Nico pointed out. “I’m not exactly fond of that, no.”

Leo turned around to grin at him. “Oh, come on. You love it when I whisper stuff in your ears.”

“You figure that out by the way I jump away from you?” Nico said drily.

“Nah, more by the fact that I’m not dead, or even a little maimed,” Leo said, getting up and moving over to him, watching Nico tense up as Leo leaned close to him, his mouth just by Nico’s ear. “Admit it, you love it,” he whispered. Nico didn’t jump away this time, but Leo could see a tremor pass through his body.

Leo smiled triumphantly. “It turns you on, doesn’t it?” he whispered.

“Shut up,” Nico growled, and Leo chuckled.

“As you wish,” he said, and moved to bring their mouths together instead. There was a definite, desperate heat in the kiss this time. Leo wanted more of it, but Nico suddenly pulled back quickly, like he had been burned.

Which was very likely, considering Leo’s hands were glowing like they were going to combust any second. 

“Shit!” Leo swore, horrified. He backed up a few steps, trying to control his body temperature. “Nico, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to.”

“It’s okay,” Nico said, touching the bright red, hand shaped mark on his neck. “I should probably put some ice on this.”

“I’m really sorry,” Leo repeated, looking down at the floor.

“I told you it was okay,” Nico said, gently touching his arm. “Hey, look at me.”

Leo reluctantly looked up, and found Nico watching him with a careful smile.

“You’re acting like you did something terrible,” he said. “I’m fine, really.”

“I hurt you,” Leo said quietly. “I don’t want it to happen again, but it will. It might be worse the next time.”

“If it happens, then it happens,” Nico shrugged. “I heal quickly.”

“Nico...” Leo begun, not really sure what to say. He didn’t have to think of anything right then, because Nico carefully closed the distance between them, giving Leo a slow kiss. Leo couldn’t help but pull him closer again, despite his fear of hurting him.

“I might lose control again,” Leo murmured as they finally parted.

“So might I,” Nico said. “I’m a son of Hades, Leo. You don’t want to be near me when that happens.”

“You won’t burn anyone,” Leo pointed out.

“No, but I will cause the ground to open, the shadows to swallow people and the dead to return,” Nico said. “Not to mention the fear aura. Trust me, I can handle being burned every now and again.”

“And if I put you on fire?” Leo asked.

“I’d rather you didn’t, but we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it,” Nico said. “Worst case scenario we’ll get a pool. It’s not a big deal.”

“It _is_ a big deal!” Leo said desperately. “My mother...I might have...I...”

He couldn’t say it, but Nico understood. However, he wasn’t pushed away like he thought he would be. Instead Nico pulled him closer, letting Leo bury his face into Nico’s shoulder.

“Do you want me to summon her?” Nico asked, and Leo looked up, staring at him. It hadn’t even occurred to him that Nico could do that. He considered it for a long moment.

“No,” he finally said. “No, I don’t need you to do that. But thank you.”

Nico nodded, and let Leo stay in his arms for a long while. Finally Leo pulled back.

“Piper was right, you really are too nice for your own good,” he said, attempting humor. “Good thing the rest of the guys don’t know about it, or I’d have to fight them off to keep you.”

Nico blushed deeply. “Fighting is not your style,” he said, completely ignoring the rest of the comment. “You would just build some sort of machine, wouldn’t you?”

“That’s what I do,” Leo said. “Hell, that’s all I can do.”

“I think it’s amazing,” Nico said, sounding completely sincere, and Leo started at him.

“Really?” he finally asked. “I mean, yeah, I know it’s useful, but it’s not exactly the kind of ability girls go wild for, if you know what I mean.”

“I’m not a girl,” Nico said. “But even if I was I’d still think it’s amazing.”

Leo felt his cheeks go hot, and Nico started laughing at him. “There’s smoke coming out your ears,” he said bemusedly. “Don’t let this go to your head.”

“Oh, it’s way above my head already,” Leo grinned. “You didn’t say so yesterday, but you like me too, don’t you?”

“I thought that was obvious,” Nico said, rolling his eyes, though Leo could see him blushing slightly. He didn’t even think about it as he leaned in to capture Nico’s lips again. Kissing Nico was definitely his favorite past time by now. 

“You’re starting to heat up again,” Nico said a little while later, and Leo made a conscious effort to calm down, but it wasn’t easy with Nico so close by.

“I think we might want to look into the pool idea,” Leo said, laughing against Nico’s neck, feeling the boy shiver under his breath. 

“Yeah, we should,” Nico agreed breathlessly, gasping when Leo placed a gentle kiss just below his ear.

“You really are sensitive, aren’t you?” Leo chuckled, causing Nico to scowl at him. “Relax, I think it’s cute.”

They stood like that for a while longer, then Nico hesitantly pulled away. “I should go,” he said. “I don’t want to keep you from your work.”

“I can’t even tell you how much I don’t mind,” Leo said. “But you’re probably right about putting some ice on that. Does it sting?”

“A little,” Nico shrugged. “I’ve had worse. Are you coming by my cabin tonight?”

“Oh, the ways I could interpret that,” Leo grinned as Nico turned red again. “Sure, I’ll be there.”

“Later, then,” Nico said, turning to walk out of the bunker. Leo tried to return to his work after that, but he had a hard time concentrating. Besides, Nico was right, wasn’t he? Complete silence always meant something was wrong.

Leo abandoned the motor and started think about other project’s instead. A portable pool, perhaps?

***

Later that day, he was walking towards the Hades cabin when a voice stopped him.

“So you’re dating Nico di Angelo, huh?” 

Leo looked up to see a fairly muscular Ares kid looking at him. Greg, if he remembered correctly. The “real man” from the Aphrodite cabin was standing behind him, as well as an Apollo kid. They didn’t exactly look friendly.

“I am,” Leo confirmed carefully, wondering how far he’d get if he ran.

“What makes you so special, then?” Greg asked, and Leo was pretty sure he sounded jealous, which meant he was here for his own sake. Well, Nico did mention some guys asking about their relationship earlier. Leo wondered if he had turned down all three of them.

“I don’t know, man. He likes me,” Leo said truthfully, hoping they would accept that and move on. They didn’t, of course.

“He turned up with a burn mark on his neck earlier,” the Apollo kid said. “You’re not good for him.”

“That’s up to him, isn’t it?” Leo said, getting angry, mostly because they were right. “Stay out of this, it’s none of your business.”

“We’re not about to see him be abused by someone like you,” Greg said, clearly preparing to start beating him up, when the surroundings suddenly turned darker and a few degrees cooler.

“I assure you, I can take care of myself,” an ice cold voice said. They turned around to see Nico appear from the darkness. Shadows seemed to be dancing around him while the grass died at his feet. Leo was suddenly reminded of the reason he had been so freaked out by Nico in the first place, a long time ago.

“We were just...” the Ares kid tried, but was silenced by a glare.

“Don’t ever stick your noses in my business again,” Nico said, radiating fear. “It will not end well for you. Now get out of here!”

They practically ran away with their tails between their legs. Leo was pretty shaken as well, but when Nico turned towards him the anger was gone.

“You okay?” Nico asked, and Leo laughed nervously.

“You just rescued me from bullies. That’s got to be the lamest thing that’s ever happened to me,” he said, earning a small smile from Nico. “And hey, you killed the grass.”

“It happens when I get upset,” Nico said. “I told you, you’re not the only one to lose control occasionally.”

“Well, at least I don’t have to worry about any rivals from the Demeter cabin,” Leo said, causing Nico to laugh.

“You have no rivals to worry about,” he said, rolling his eyes when Leo raised an eyebrow. “Those three were it, I think. And I can’t stand bullies, no matter how good looking.”

“So I win by default?” Leo teased him.

“Now you’re just fishing for compliments. Stop it.”

“Never,” Leo laughed. 

Things went pretty smoothly for a couple of weeks. Nico visited the underworld and Camp Jupiter on a regular basis, but he was at Camp Half-Blood often enough that Leo didn’t feel abandoned. The other campers had stopped questioning their relationship by now, but Nico was still really uncomfortable with any sort of physical affection in public. In the beginning Leo liked to tease him about it, always sneaking up on him to steal a kiss or whisper lewd things in his ear just to see him turn red and stalk off even if he’d been in the middle of a conversation. As time moved on it became more frustrating than funny.

About two months after Nico had unexpectedly agreed to date him Leo decided to confront him about it.

“Are you ashamed of me?”

Nico blinked, looking completely taken by surprise. “What are you talking about?”

“You never let me touch you when anyone else is around,” Leo complained. “Hades, I can’t even hold your hand without you pushing me away.”

Nico’s gaze fell to the floor. “It’s...it’s inappropriate,” he said. “And you know I’m not the type to touch others easily.”

“You have no problem with it when we’re alone,” Leo said, which wasn’t entirely true considering Nico always gently pushed him away when things got to a certain point. “And you kiss Hazel publically all the time.”

“It’s not the same,” Nico said, shaking his head. “Hazel is my sister. It’s different with you.”

“Well, good to know you’re not thinking of me as your brother at least,” Leo muttered.

“Look, I don’t understand why this is such a big issue,” Nico said. “Why do you even want to touch me in public?”

“Why don’t you want me to?” Leo countered. “I mean, we’re together. We shouldn’t stop being together just because other people are around. Which is why I want to know if you’re ashamed of me.”

“Of course not!” Nico said angrily, then took a deep breath, looking down on the floor. “It’s just… complicated, okay?” 

“Explain it to me, then,” Leo demanded. 

“Fine, I’ll try” Nico said, frustrated running a hand through his hair. “You know how you always make fun of me for being old-fashioned?”

Leo nodded slowly, wondering where he was going with this.

“I was bathed in the river Lethe as a child, so I have very few memories left of growing up in the thirties. Some have resurfaced with time, but mostly it’s blank,” Nico said. “The thing is that even though I don’t remember much per se, it’s still all there in my head. Music tastes, dance steps, movies I’ve seen, the Italian language, and a perception of right and wrong.”

Nico hesitated before continuing. “You’ve probably guessed this, but I had a pretty huge crush on Percy for a long time,” he said. “When I realized the...the romantic nature of it, I freaked out. I was dealing with a lot of stuff back then, so maybe it was worse than it would have been, I don’t know. The point is that I didn’t really accept that part of me until Jason found out and convinced me to talk to Hazel about it. That was less than two years ago, and I still struggle with it sometimes.” 

“So you’re saying,” Leo said slowly. “That the reason you don’t like touching in public is because you’re not completely comfortable with yourself?”

Nico nodded. “I’m sorry,” he said. “It’s not about you. It’s just me being an idiot.”

“No, I understand where you’re coming from,” Leo said, putting an arm around his shoulders. “Given what you just told me, coming out to me and Percy the way you did was really brave.”

“Well, I didn’t think I knew anyone else like me,” Nico said. “So when you told us you used to like Jason it was sort of spontaneous.”

“And now boys are falling over themselves to ask you out. You’ve come a long way,” Leo chuckled. “Be honest with me. Do you want me to stop touching you in public, or do you secretly like it?”

Nico blushed deeply at that. “I like it,” he said. “I just can’t respond, and my automatic reaction is always to freak out. I can’t help it.”

“At least I know why now,” Leo said. “I guess this is also the reason you don’t want to have sex with me?”

Leo hadn’t though Nico could possibly turn any redder, but he did. “I..Um,” he stammered, and it was just too adorable. Leo grinned widely as he leaned in to give Nico a deep kiss. Nico made a muffled sound that might have been surprise, but his arms quickly closed around Leo’s waist, bringing him closer.

A while later Nico slowly pushed him away. “Your hands are hot,” he mumbled.

“Sorry,” Leo said, lowering his body temperature as best he could with Nico in his lap. It wasn’t exactly easy, but he didn’t want the boy to move, either.

“Are you okay with, you know, not doing anything yet?” Nico asked quietly, honestly looking a little scared.

“It’s fine,” Leo said. “Not that I’m not anxious to get rid of my virginity, but I can wait.”

“Thank you,” Nico said, the relief apparent in his voice as he rested his head on Leo’s shoulder.

“Besides, I know Hazel would kill me if I tried to pressure you into anything,” Leo joked, and Nico chuckled against his neck.

“She would. Probably Jason as well,” Nico smiled. “And I do actually want to, it’s just...”

“I know, don’t worry about it,” Leo said, placing a kiss just below Nico’s ear, grinning when he heard his breath hitch. “In the meantime I expect you to teach me foxtrot.”

Nico laughed at that. “Fine by me.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!


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